Five Things I Want to See More of in Books

Do you all remember that Top 5 Wednesday post we did a while ago about the Supernatural Creatures We Wanted to See More of in Books? Today, I'm going to do a similar post about what I want to see more of in books.

Recently, I've found myself wishing for certain tropes and other things to show up more in the books I'm reading. Some of the things I'm wishing for are definitely a result of all the fanfiction I've read this year and others are because I've noticed a decided lack of them in the books I've been reading over the last year. So I sat down and made a list like I'm wont to do and now I'm going to share it with you. These are the five things I want to see more of in the future.

Soulmates
I can blame my obsession with the Soulmates Trope firmly on all of the fanfiction I've read lately. This trope is my crack. I could write a whole post just on the things I love about it. I just want to see the idea of soulmates and the many ways people have come up to help find the other piece of yourself outside of fanfic. I want soul-identifying marks, telepathic connections, countdown timers, or tattooed names on wrists to start showing up in my romance books. And I'm not talking insta-lovey fated to be mated stuff. I want them to find each other and get to know each other. They may have been made for each other but make them work for their happily ever after.



Non-Contemporary Queer Romances
Don't get me wrong. I have adored all of the contemporary queer romance I've read over the last few years but I want to see more queer romance in my sci-fi and fantasy books. Seriously! I love fantasy books with queer romance like the Whyborne & Griffin novels but... Where are my gays in space books at? Where's my fantasy romances where the dwarf actually falls in love with the elf and doesn't just have an extended bromance? I want to see more wizards/witches fall in love with their shifter familiars. Thank you Gail Carriger for filling that void I never knew I had! I want to see an alpha fall in love with another alpha. I want to read about gay space pirates. I want to see the princess fall for the "evil" fairy. Just... just give me all the non-contemporary queer romances please!

Established Relationships
I love a good love story as much as the next person but I feel like romance is stuck on one kind of love story relationship dynamic. As much as I love seeing the love interests meet and fall in love, I want to see more established and supportive relationships from the start in books. And not just as side characters. I want to see them as the main couple. Love stories don't end once the couple finally comes together. They continue until death do we part. I want to see that part of the love story. Established relationships are just as romantic and I just need more supportive of each other, there through thick and thin couples.



Non-Conventional Books
I just finished up a reread of the first two books of The Illuminae Files and it made me want more books with non-conventional formats. I want more epistolary books like Illuminae and Sightwitch with pictures telling the story while not being graphic novels. Heck. I just want more illustrated adult books. Could you imagine an adult book done in the style of a Brian Selznick book? Just take my money now!



Platonic Relationships
I know this gets said a lot but I want to see more platonic relationships in books. Where are my girl and boy best friend books where they're just friends and have no romantic feelings whatsoever for each other? Where are my books where two girls are friends and supportive of each other and not trying to tear the other down? Where are my books that revolve around the friendships and not the romance like The Raven Cycle books? I just need more healthy platonic friendships in my life.

What kinds of things do you want to see more of in books?